Pocket protector

ABSTRACT

A POCKET PROTECTOR MADE FROM A SINGLE BLANK OF MATERIAL WHICH IS FOLDED AT CERTAIN CRITICAL LOCATIONS TO PROVIDE A POCKET PROTECTOR INSERTABLE IN, AND FREELY REMOVABLE FROM, TROUSERS POCKETS FOR THE PURPOSE OF PROTECTING AND LINING THE POCKETS. THE LOWER EDGE OF THE POCKET PROTECTOR IS CONTOURED TO CONFORM TO THE BOTTOM AND INSIDE PORTION OF THE POCKET IN WHICH IT IS INSERTED. THE PROTECTOR IS MADE OF A NON-WOVEN MATERIAL.

C. T. CRAWFORD POCKET PROTECTOR Feb. 16, 1971 Filed Sept. 4, 1969 :ELC-31 liEf-'E filza-E D. mw F Ww Vm WC Z A w M C c. T. CRAWFORD Feb. 16,v1971 POCKET PROTECTOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 4, 1969 42 Elfi-E"ELETLD E l E.-i i

.em /Mw mp A. NW @M ww n W NC l, -/a .M- @W M W/ C United States PatentO 3,562,819 POCKET PROTECTOR Claura T. Crawford, 1215 W. Randolph, Enid,Okla. 73701 Filed Sept. 4, 1969, Ser. No. 855,332 Int. Cl. A41d 27/20U.S. Cl. 2-248 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A pocket protectormade from a single blank of material which is folded at certain criticallocations to provide a pocket protector insertable in, and freelyremovable from, trousers pockets for the purpose of protecting andlining the pockets. The lower edge of the pocket protector is contouredto conform to the bottom and inside portion of the pocket in which it isinserted. The protector is made of a non-woven material.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to pocket protectors usedto line and protect pockets of Wearing apparel. More specically, theinvention relates to a pocket protector insertable in, and freelyremovable from, the front pockets of mens trousers.

yBRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART In Buchanan et al. U.S. Pat.3,066,309, it is proposed to provide an inner pocket or liner for aregular garment pocket by sewing a folded panel into the garment pocketin a way which permits the stitches holding the inner pocket inside thegarment pocket to be removed when the liner or inner pocket has becomeexcessively worn. The liner or inner pocket described in this patent ischaracterized in having a single ply of material forming the oppositesides of the liner or pocket. The material used for this purpose is aweb material.

A patch which is designed to be sewn into the lowermost portion of aWorn or damaged trousers pocket to form a liner covering holes or ripsin the trousers pocket is described in U.S. Pat. 2,436,879. The patch isheld in place in the lower portion of the pocket by adhesive distributedalong the upper portion of the patch. A single panel or layer of wovenfabric constitutes the two opposite sides of the patch.

Various other forms of liners or inner pockets have been proposed byother patents, and have generally been made of a :fabric material whichis stitched into the regular trousers pocket.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENT INVENTION The present inventionprovides an improved, removable pocket protector for trousers pockets.Broadly described, the pocket protector of the invention comprises anonwoven panel which is folded along an inner side edge and sewn alongcertain outer edges after folding so as to provide a cup-shaped o rpocket-shaped article having a curved lower edge of a configurationcomplementary to the lower portion of the front pockets of menstrousers. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the pocketprotector of the invention is double walled, and is made of a leather orsynthetic resinous material having high wear resistance.

An object of my invention is to provide a pocket protector for trouserswhich prevents the development or formation of holes in the pockets ftrousers as a result of the carrying of loose change, keys, knives,etc., in such pockets.

Patented Feb. 16, 1971 A further object of my invention is to provide apocket protector of non-woven material which holds its shape, is ofdouble thickness, and is double seamed at the lower side while beingrelatively thin in cross-sectional thickness.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a removable pocketprotector which can be quickly and easily inserted in, or removed from,the front pocket of a pair of trousers while change, keys, and otherarticles normally carried in pockets are located therein.

A further object of the invention is to provide a removable pocket lineror protector which can be transferred with its contents intact from thepocket of one trouser to the pocket of another trouser without thenecessity to remove the contents of the pocket protector.

An additional object of my invention is to provide a pocket protectorthat is easy to manufacture, and is strong and durable in construction,and thus is characterized in having a long and defect-free operatinglife.

A further object of the invention is to provide a pocket protector whichis constructed in such a manner that When the bulk of the content whichis normally carried in the pocket is placed in the pocket protector,such articles will keep the upper portion of the pocket protector open,making the content thereof easily accessible without removing the pocketprotector itself from the pocket each time a part of the content isremoved.

Additional objects and advantages of my invention will become apparentas the following detailed description of the invention is read inconjunction with the accompanying drawings which illustrate theinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. l is an elevation View of theblank used in forming a pocket protector constructed in accordance withone embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates the blank depicted in FIG. 1 after it has been foldedand cut in the performance of certain intermediate steps in theformation of one embodiment of the pocket liner of the invention.

FIG. 3 is an elevation view of one embodiment of the pocket liner of theinvention formed from the blank shown in FIG. l.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4 4 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is an elevation view of the blank used in forming a diiferentembodiment of the pocket liner of the invention.

FIG. 6 is an elevation view of the blank shown in FIG. 5 after it hasbeen folded in carrying out one of the steps used to form an embodimentof the pocket liner of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a front elevation view of a different embodiment of the pocketliner of the invention which has been formed with the blank shown inFIG. 5.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along line 8-8 of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is an elevation view of a blank used to form yet anotherembodiment of the pocket liner of the invention.

FIG. 10 is an elevation view of another panel of material used informing a different embodiment of the invention in conjunction with thepanel shown in FIG. 9.

FIG. ll is an elevation view of a different embodiment of the inventionconstructed using the blank shown in FIGS. 9 and 10.

FIG. 12 is a sectional view taken along line 12-12 of FIG. 11.

yDETAILED `DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTIONReferring initially to FIG. 1, shown therein is a flat piece ofnon-woven material constituting a blank from which one embodiment of theinvention is made. The blank 10 is preferably made of a synthetic resinmaterial. It will be noted that the blank 10 is in the general shape ofa rectangle, the corners of which have been rounded. The blank .10 maybe considered as divided into four panels 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d by twofold lines which will be referred to as a longitudinal fold line 12 anda transverse fold line 14.

In forming the pocket protector of the invention the blank 10 is iirstfolded along the transverse fold line 14. Since the transverse fold line14 is located in substantially the center of the blank 10, this willresult in the rounded corners of the blank being placed in alignment orregistry. The upper and lower edges of the blank 110 are also aligned.The aligned lower edges and rounded lower corners of the superimposedpanels 10c and 10d of the folded blank 10 are next sewn to each otheralong the line illustrated by the stitching 418. Having folded and sewnthe blank 10 into the status shown in FIG. 2, a portion of the loweredges of the superimposed panels 10c and 10d of the folded blank is cutaway along the dashed line shown in FIG. 2. It will be noted that theline 20 along which the edge portions of the folded blank are cut liesgenerally outside of the stitch line 1-8. Attention is directed,however, to the portion of the blank 10 which is immediately below andadjacent the intersection of the longitudinal fold line 12 with thealigned end edges of the folded blank. It will be noted at this locationthat the stitch line 18 here extends outwardly toward the original uncutend edges of the panels '10d and 10c of the blank 110 and that the line20 along which a part of these aligned edges is cut extends outwardly tointersect at point X the original edges at the aligned ends of thepanels 10c and 10d. The purpose of this will be hereinafter explained.

After the blank 10 has been folded along transverse fold line 14, sewnand cut as illustrated in FIG. 2, the panels 10a and 10b of the blank 10are folded downwardly along the longitudinal fold line 12 and inopposite directions from each other so that they are superimposed over,and aligned with, the panels 10a and 10b. However, since the lower edgeportions of the panels =10c and 10d have previously been cut away alongline 20, the edges of the panels 10a and 10b will extend outwardly of,or beyond, the edges of the panels 10c and 10d, except at the locationimmediately below the intersection of the longitudinal fold line 12 withthe end edges of the panels of the blank. It will thus be possible tosew the lower edges of the panels 10a and 10b directly to each otherwith stitching 22 without sewing through any part of the panels 10c and10d, except for a small portion of these panels immediately adjacent anddirectly below the intersection of the fold line 12 with the end edgesof the panels. When the lower and side edges of the panels 10c and v10dare sewn to each other in the manner described, a pocket protectorhaving double walls, and having a double seam at the lower and sideedges thereof is formed. A cross-sectional illustration of the completedpocket protector appears in FIG. 4. It will be noted that the panels 10cand .10d form the inner walls of the pocket protector and the panels 10aand 10b form the outer walls. It will also be noted that the inner wallsare sewn to each other along the lower edge, and the outer walls aresewn to each other along the lower edges but are not sewn to the loweredges of the inner walls. This construction makes an especially strongand durable pocket protector which is relatively thin so as not to bebulky or bulging in the pocket in which it is used. Moreover, theparticular contour of the bottom and side edges is adapted to fit thepocket protector smoothly and easily to the contour of the pocket inwhich it is located.

A different embodiment of the invention is depicted in FIGS. 5-8. Inthis embodiment of the invention, a blank 26 is utilized to form thepocket protector. The

blank 26 is generally egg-shaped in configuration-that is, one of therounded ends of the blank is narrower than the other end of the blank.The blank -26 is folded along a longitudinal fold line 28 and atransverse fold line 30. The transverse fold line 30 is bent at itspoint of intersection with the longitudinal fold line 28 so that bothparts of the transverse fold line 30` extend at an angle of less thanwith respect to the longitudinal fold line 28. The purpose of thisarrangement of the fold lines will be hereinafter explained. The foldlines may be perceived to divide the blank 26- into four panels 26a,26b, 26C, and 26d.

As shown in FIG. 6, an initial step in the formation of this embodimentof the pocket protector of the invention is to fold the blank 26 alongthe longitudinal fold line 28. When so folded, the panel y26a overliesand is complementary in conguration to the panel 2 6c and the panel 26iboverlies, and is complementary 1n configuration to the panel 26d.

After the blank 26 has been folded along the longitudinal fold line 28to the position shown in FIG. 6, it is then folded along the transversefold line 30 to the position depicted in FIG. 7. It will be noted thatthe result of folding the blank 26 along the transverse fold line 30 1sto align the lower edges of all of the panels 26a, 26b, 26C, and 26d andalso the curved corners of each of the four panels which are formed onequal radii. It Iwill be noted, however, that the fold between thepanels 26h and 26d which constitutes the right hand portion of thelongitudinal fold line 28 is not aligned with the left hand portion ofthe longitudinal fold line 28 which joins the panels 26a and 26C, butrather extends at an angle with respect to this left hand portion of thefold line 28. Stated differently, the fold which interconnects thepanels 26b and 26d lies below, and extends at an angle with respect to,the fold which interconnects the panels 26a and 26C.

With the blank 26 thus folded, the aligned lower and curved side edgesof the four panels 26a-26d are sewn together as indicated by referencenumeral 32. The result is that the pocket protector constituted by thisembodiment of the invention has offset upper edges between the doublewalls of the pocket protector, thus permitting the fingers to be moreeasily inserted in the pocket protector lwhen it is desired to placearticles therein, or remove articles therefrom.

A third embodiment of the invention is illustrated in FIGS. 9-12. Asshown in FIG. 9, a blank 34 is utilized for making this embodiment ofthe invention, which blank has a straight upper edge 36, a pair ofrounded end edges 38 and 40, and a straight lower edge I42 which extendsparallel to the upper edge. There are also indicated on the blank 34shown in FIG. 9, a longitudinal fold line 46 and a transverse fold line48 which divide the blank 34 into panels 34a and 34b.

A change pocket blank 50 is illustrated in FIG. 10. This blank 450 has afold line 52 shown thereon. In completing the embodiment of the pocketprotector which is Imade utilizing the blanks shown in FIGS. 9 and 10,the blank 34 is initially folded along its longtiudinal fold line 46.This folding movement is used to form a reinforced upper edge portion ofthe pocket liner. After it is folded along the fold line 44, the foldedover upper edge portion of the blank 34 is sewn to the body of thepanels 34a and 34b. This effectively hems the upper edges of the pocketprotector.

In like manner, the change pocket blank 50` is hemmed along its upperedge by folding the upper edge portion downwardly along the fold line 52and then sewing this downturned upper edge portion to the bottom of thechange pocket blank along the seam line 58. The hemmed change pocketblank is then sewn to the panel 34a by sewing along the lines 60 and 62as shown in FIG. l1. The Iblank 34 is then folded along the transversefold line 48 to bring the panel 34h into alignment and registry with thepanel 34a, and on the opposite side of the panel 34a from that to whichthe change pocket blank S0 has been sewn. As the last step in theformation of the pocket protector shown in FIG. 11, the lower edges ofthe change pocket blank 50 and of the panels 34a and 34h are sewntogether by the stitching 64. The pocket protector is now completed andappears in cross-section as shown in FIG. 12. Here it will be perceivedthat the change pocket blank 50 forms a double wall with the panel 34aand also provides an additional small open pocket for carrying coins orother at articles.

Although certain preferred embodiments of the invention have been hereindescribed in order to illustrate the manner in which the invention is tobe practiced, it is to be understood that various changes can be made inthe described structure without departure from the basic principles ofthe invention. Changes of this sort are therefore deemed to becircumscribed by the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is: 1. A pocket protector comprising: four panels foldedon substantially perpendicular fold lines from a single blank ofmaterial into superimposed relation to form a hollow double walledreceptacle having an open top with one of fold lines forming top edges,a straight side edge and a curved side edge on the opposite side of thearticle from the straight side edge; and

stitching closing the lower edges and curved side edges of the fourpanels.

2. A pocket protector as defined in claim 1 wherein two of said panelsare interconnected through a fold line forming a first opening definingtop edge of said article, and the remaining two of said panels areinterconnected through a fold line forming a second opening defining topedge 0f said article which is spaced below, and extends at an angle to,said first opening defining top edge.

3. A pocket protector as defined in claim 1 wherein two of said fourpanels are interconnected through a fold line located at, and forming,said straight side edge, and the other two of said four panels are alsointerconnected through a fold line located at said straight side edge.

4. A pocket protector as defined in claim 1 wherein said panels aredelineated by a longitudinal fold line anda transverse fold line whichextend substantially normal to each other in said blank, and wherein afirst pair of said panels located on opposite sides of said transversefold line and on the same side of said longitudinal fold line are sewnto each other while superimposed to form the inner walls of said pocketprotector, and wherein the remaining two panels are stitched to eachother along said lower edges, and to each other and to said rst pair ofpanels at a location on said curved side edge.

5. A pocket protector as dened in claim 2 wherein the lower edges ofsaid four panels are aligned and are stitched together.

6. A pocket protector as defined in claim 1 wherein said blank is madeof a non-woven material.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,436,879 3/1948 Buck 2-2482,882,532 4/ 1959 ODonnell 2-253 2,967,307 1/ 1961 ODonnell 22533,066,309 12/ 1962 Buchanan et al 2*-248 ALFRED R. GUEST, PrimaryExaminer

